SF to NY- final thoughts

I wanted to let some time pass before making my final observations and review of our cruise experience on Regent Seven Seas Mariner. We returned home just over three weeks ago and it is back to the normal routine. It almost seems as though we were never away! Life and responsibilities do that.....

This was our first Regent cruise. We have cruised Oceania four times in the last 5 years, Princess and Holland America in the very distant past. We are not really cruisers. Most of our trips are land based, soft adventure, Viet Nam and Cambodia last spring, Slovenia, Croatia and Bosnia the year before, Iceland and Greenland for a quick summer jaunt. When we have chosen to cruise, it is based on the itinerary, i.e. Baltics, Mediterranean, etc.

We had long wanted to see the Panama Canal and the SF to NY itinerary fit within our vacation schedules and had the benefit of a west coast departure. We added a few days in New York at the end.

Generally our Regent experience was very good. The food and service were excellent. Our cabin was comfortable and we were well looked after by our cabin attendants. The décor is dated, but the ship is due for dry dock soon and will be updated. I only heard one complaint from a fellow passenger about the state of her cabin. She claimed that it was really run down. That was not our experience.

As I set out in my earlier observations thread, the demographic for this cruise was much older than we had expected. We are in our late 50's and I felt positively youthful during this cruise! I would guess that most passengers were 70+, many with mobility challenges and several travelling with caregivers. Our travel agent (who is familiar with both Oceania and Regent) suggested that passengers may be slightly older than us, active professionals or newly retired. Perhaps because this was an 18 night cruise, the demographic skewed about 15+ years older than us. The age factor is not in itself a problem-most passengers were very friendly and engaging, but it does affect the atmosphere and social/entertainment offerings on the ship. There are a limited number of truly active options: fitness and dance classes, deck sports and some were limited due to the rough sea conditions that we experienced. That is not Regent's fault.

We also had extra sea days as two ports were cancelled (Acapulco and Nassau) due to hurricane threats. We enjoyed these days very much, but that view was not universal. There was a group who was younger than us and they were completely bored.

We attended a couple of shows, but for the most part, they conflicted with our usual 8:30 dinner reservations. I will not repeat my complaints about the music and evening entertainment. They are detailed extensively in my earlier thread. Suffice it to say, if you prefer any musical selections post 1970, either for listening in any of the lounges or late night dancing, you may be disappointed.

What Regent lacked in entertainment and activities, it made up for in the dining and service experience. There was the occasional hiccup, but if there was an issue, it was corrected very quickly. We dined in all the restaurants (more than once) and never had any difficulty in securing extra reservations at Signatures or Prime 7 (table for 2) . Perhaps it is because we tend to dine later. We also liked the nightly menu changes in Compass Rose. They cooked special Indian meals at DH's request a couple of times and he was very pleased with them. We found the portions to be very large for most meals. We took to ordering half portions mid-way through the cruise and found them to be more than sufficient.

As to the wines, I believe they vary from cruise to cruise. We asked for a list of available selections which the head sommelier provided to us on the second day of the cruise. There were also two wine tastings which introduced some new options that we had never considered. The ship ran out of the included Chardonnay on the last day of the cruise-no doubt there was increased demand for popular selections due to the unforeseen extra sea days.

Most of the port excursions were largely bus rides. Even though tours were designated as walking tours, there were many participants who did not wish to walk. As with any group tour, the pace of activity is geared to the LCD. The one "active" tour was a forest walk in Costa Rica. It was a one hour loop trail with both downhill and uphill portions and a traverse over suspension bridges. It was enjoyable but not particularly novel or strenuous. We have always booked private port tours in the past, but this being our first time on Regent, we thought we would check out their offerings. Conclusion: private is better!

We really enjoyed the Panama Canal transit. It was the reason that we had selected this cruise and we were not disappointed. What an engineering marvel! The onboard commentary, which began just after 6 am and continued throughout the passage, was excellent.

A brief comment on the WIFI. We needed a connection for ageing parent issues at home and (regrettably) to monitor our respective offices. The internet would cut out unexpectedly at times, depending on the location of the ship and sometimes the router had to be reset. For the most part, communications were adequate and staff was helpful if there was a connectivity problem.

I suspect our cruise experience was affected by the reality of dodging five different storms/hurricanes. There were two in Cabo-one just prior to arrival and one after we left, Hurricane Max which caused us to miss Acapulco and Hurricanes Maria and Jose who did their dance in the Caribbean. The captain skillfully changed course and kept us safe throughout. He kept us well informed and we always felt that we were in very capable hands. We arrived in NY one day early as a result.

We began and ended the cruise in code red. The initial code red was lifted after a couple of days, but was reinstated for the last couple days of the cruise. I do not believe it was norovirus, but there was definitely a cold/sore throat virus that seemed to be circulating. Regent seems to take these matters very seriously.

Though Regent may not be a perfect fit for us, we would not hesitate to cruise Regent again. For us, this cruise was about relaxing-something we are not able to easily do at home due to professional and personal obligations. This was "couple time" for us and we enjoyed it immensely. DH often says that "We make our own fun". Yes, I would prefer more active options and more modern music and dancing options, but we still had a very positive experience.

Thank you for your fair and balanced report. I agree about tours—people who don’t want to walk or can’t walk should not book walking tours. I have ranted about this previously, but I clearly states in the tour description what is required. People either don’t read it or choose to ignore it ofttimes, so everyone suffers.

I do think the age demographic skews older on the longer cruises. I can even tell a difference between 7 day and 14 day in that regard. And since I am still working full time plus, 14 Days is Our max limit.

What a great post and if running out of Chardonnay was your only problem---how great is that. I guessing they had something else in a branded Chardonnay to replace it. Music, yes let's not go to that place. I loved the review and yes most people should be like you two, make your own fun! Wouldn't that be great---glad you had a good time. We only have 33 days until we'll be on the ship. Thanks again for taking the time. Rick

I also appreciated your review - especially how well you accepted having code red twice on your cruise. That would be a bit much for us.

While RachaelG and I tend to see many things the same, I have to disagree regarding the age of passengers on longer itineraries (and in the Caribbean - no matter how short or long the cruise is - likely due to how many seniors live in Florida). Having said that, we don't really pay attention to the ages of the passengers.

I will comment on music because the C.D. does remember you since you were one of the very few passengers that ever mentioned the type of music played on Regent. He explained that "new" music has to be practiced before it is played. I suspect that other music would be played if there were a calling for it.

Speaking of age, our next cruise is one that is very active. Although I feel that longer sailings tend to bring older passengers, I am guessing that the age of passengers on our 25 night cruise will skew younger due to the itinerary. Most excursions will not accommodate wheelchairs or walkers. Thankfully, most cruises will accommodate them but the Amazon can be a bit difficult - even for able bodied people.

Again, thank you for posting your balanced review. Having read what was happening on your cruise, I did not think that the review would be so positive (but am happy that it is).

I also appreciated your review - especially how well you accepted having code red twice on your cruise. That would be a bit much for us.

 

While RachaelG and I tend to see many things the same, I have to disagree regarding the age of passengers on longer itineraries (and in the Caribbean - no matter how short or long the cruise is - likely due to how many seniors live in Florida). Having said that, we don't really pay attention to the ages of the passengers.

 

I will comment on music because the C.D. does remember you since you were one of the very few passengers that ever mentioned the type of music played on Regent. He explained that "new" music has to be practiced before it is played. I suspect that other music would be played if there were a calling for it.

 

Speaking of age, our next cruise is one that is very active. Although I feel that longer sailings tend to bring older passengers, I am guessing that the age of passengers on our 25 night cruise will skew younger due to the itinerary. Most excursions will not accommodate wheelchairs or walkers. Thankfully, most cruises will accommodate them but the Amazon can be a bit difficult - even for able bodied people.

 

Again, thank you for posting your balanced review. Having read what was happening on your cruise, I did not think that the review would be so positive (but am happy that it is).

Jackie; I don't want to spoil your day....but hold your breath. We did the Amazon trip 2 years ago and there for sure were people with wheelchairs and a lot of walkers. One (very heavy) wheelchair guest insisted on joining a canoo trip to the inlands. It took 4 bodybuilders to carry him into the canoo that almost capsaized. I have never seen a thing like that before and hope to never see it again. It was quite shocking.

At Manaus there is a fabulous Opera House. Some walker users insisted to go upstairs as well, indeed that is a great sight, but there is no elevator...quess what happened.

So Jackie, please be prepared! And just enjoy the trip but don't have high expectations, the Regent Amazon trip is just a quite touristic experience nowadays.......:halo:

Really nice review....thank you for taking the time to send it!

Thank you for all your posting during your trip and your well written summary.

I read your comments with great interest as we are doing our first Regents cruise in Nov. 2018. It will be 44 nights from Honolulu to Sydney. We have done 31 cruises, almost exclusively Royal Caribbean. Our "bucket list" includes the South Sea Islands, New Zealand, and Australia. Having researched the options, Regents has, by far, the most complete "package" for us. So, comments from a "Regents newbie" are very important to us. I will say up front that due to the cost and length of our cruise, I fully expect to be at the "young" end of the spectrum (67). But we are doing this for the itinerary in luxury. So your comments have done much to reinforce my decision. Thank you for a truly unbiased and comprehensive review.

Jackie; I don't want to spoil your day....but hold your breath. We did the Amazon trip 2 years ago and there for sure were people with wheelchairs and a lot of walkers. One (very heavy) wheelchair guest insisted on joining a canoo trip to the inlands. It took 4 bodybuilders to carry him into the canoo that almost capsaized. I have never seen a thing like that before and hope to never see it again. It was quite shocking.

At Manaus there is a fabulous Opera House. Some walker users insisted to go upstairs as well, indeed that is a great sight, but there is no elevator...quess what happened.

So Jackie, please be prepared! And just enjoy the trip but don't have high expectations, the Regent Amazon trip is just a quite touristic experience nowadays.......:halo:

Thank you for that post. My expectations of this cruise are already so low that anything will exceed my expectations. Well, I'd rather see walkers than a bunch of kids on a luxury cruise so that is okay. We are doing more active excursions this time (4 x 4's, snorkeling, etc.) and the excursion descriptions say no wheelchairs but we'll see. I don't want to take this thread off topic but I will have lots to say about the cruise that I never wanted to take next month.;p

Thank you for that post. My expectations of this cruise are already so low that anything will exceed my expectations. Well, I'd rather see walkers than a bunch of kids on a luxury cruise so that is okay. We are doing more active excursions this time (4 x 4's, snorkeling, etc.) and the excursion descriptions say no wheelchairs but we'll see. I don't want to take this thread off topic but I will have lots to say about the cruise that I never wanted to take next month.;p

There's a solution to this problem. Forget about Regent's excursions and book your own.

There's a solution to this problem. Forget about Regent's excursions and book your own.

We did book our own excursion (with three other Regent passengers) in Manaus -- full day -- meeting of the waters, pink dolphins, lunch, etc. for only $60/person. There really are no choices in some ports in the Amazon - even Regent doesn't offer excursions. You can go ashore and walk around and that is about all there is. I've already cancelled two excursions for this trip and time will tell how many more we'll cancel (definitely won't cancel the private excursion). We are up for some snorkeling (the Regent Choice excursion - not the "included" one that is likely to be mobbed).

My issue with the Amazon is the same that I have anywhere in the world that is extremely hot - I just don't want to go there. However, keeping my 38 year marriage as happy as it has been there has to be compromise. This cruise had me purchasing everything possible item to keep myself cooler in the blistering heat. Once I'm there, I'll put a smile on my face and will be happy. However, what I post on CC is another thing since my DH doesn't read CC.

wripro - I'm babbling about the Amazon again ...... the topic is the review. Just reread it and am amazed at how well the TS accepted the condition of the ship, missed ports, the food, code red, etc. IMO, as difficult as some cruises can be, it is a personal decision as to whether you allow the issues to ruin your vacation or if you do the best you can and enjoy it. Pirouette's attitude about everything is amazing (in a good way).

Jackie; I don't want to spoil your day....but hold your breath. We did the Amazon trip 2 years ago and there for sure were people with wheelchairs and a lot of walkers. One (very heavy) wheelchair guest insisted on joining a canoo trip to the inlands. It took 4 bodybuilders to carry him into the canoo that almost capsaized. I have never seen a thing like that before and hope to never see it again. It was quite shocking.

At Manaus there is a fabulous Opera House. Some walker users insisted to go upstairs as well, indeed that is a great sight, but there is no elevator...quess what happened.

So Jackie, please be prepared! And just enjoy the trip but don't have high expectations, the Regent Amazon trip is just a quite touristic experience nowadays.......:halo:

Equally shocked and horrified to read about the passenger insisting they be lifted into a canoe from wheelchair. Definitely not a manoeuvre that should have been undertaken at all. Risk assessment and health and safety policies were not adhered to there.

It’s amazing at the expectations of people wishing to be lifted or handled by staff who at the end of the day are not employed, trained or insured to be lifting them and risking their own safety on the line. Jean.

Jean, I agree...and in the years of reading posts you would be surprised how many posters have encouraged

these passengers to go ashore....the crew will take care of everything.......and not just on this line.

We did book our own excursion (with three other Regent passengers) in Manaus -- full day -- meeting of the waters, pink dolphins, lunch, etc. for only $60/person. There really are no choices in some ports in the Amazon - even Regent doesn't offer excursions. You can go ashore and walk around and that is about all there is. I've already cancelled two excursions for this trip and time will tell how many more we'll cancel (definitely won't cancel the private excursion). We are up for some snorkeling (the Regent Choice excursion - not the "included" one that is likely to be mobbed).

 

My issue with the Amazon is the same that I have anywhere in the world that is extremely hot - I just don't want to go there. However, keeping my 38 year marriage as happy as it has been there has to be compromise. This cruise had me purchasing everything possible item to keep myself cooler in the blistering heat. Once I'm there, I'll put a smile on my face and will be happy. However, what I post on CC is another thing since my DH doesn't read CC.

 

wripro - I'm babbling about the Amazon again ...... the topic is the review. Just reread it and am amazed at how well the TS accepted the condition of the ship, missed ports, the food, code red, etc. IMO, as difficult as some cruises can be, it is a personal decision as to whether you allow the issues to ruin your vacation or if you do the best you can and enjoy it. Pirouette's attitude about everything is amazing (in a good way).

I agree. I don't know that I could be so understanding. Frankly, there seem to be way too many code reds on Regent lately, enough so that I would count on one and that's enough to put me off. But that's just me. Others may find it easier to deal with.

I agree. I don't know that I could be so understanding. Frankly, there seem to be way too many code reds on Regent lately, enough so that I would count on one and that's enough to put me off. But that's just me. Others may find it easier to deal with.

I would be more concerned if it wasn't just one ship. Last year the newest ship of Oceania's fleet (Riviera) had code red three times (at least three times that was reportable - meaning that it was identified as norovirus). Mariner has had code red three or four times in a row but it is not norovirus (at least the CDC hasn't put it on their website). Also, in recent years, almost every time we travel during the months of Nov. - March via airplane and/or cruise ship (not only Regent), we end up with a cold, bronchitis or worse.